Front opening dishwasher with improved dish rack arrangement



April 9, 1963 M. NASSER 3,084,702

FRONT OPENING DISHWASHER WITH IMPROVED DISH RACK ARRANGEMENT Filed Feb.14, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. MITCHELL NASSER ms ATTORNEY April 9,1963 M. NASSER 3,084,702

FRONT OPENING DISHWASHER WITH IMPROVED DISH RACK ARRANGEMENT Filed Feb.14, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. M|TC HELL NASSER WWW I-HS ATTORNEYUnited States The present invention relates to dishwashing machines ofthe type having a front opening and dish racks which slide out, and moreparticularly to a particular combination of liquid circulating means anddish rack formation which provides optimum effectiveness for suchmachines.

It is an object of my invention to provide an improved dishwashingmachine of the type having a front opening to the tub wherein the liquidcirculating means extends, in part, up above the level of a lower dishrack, and the lower dish rack is formed so that it may slide out overthe circulating means. In addition the dish rack is formed so as toprovide, at the same time, reinforcement across the recirculating meansand an added intermediate level for receiving dishes to be washed.

In one aspect of my invention, I provide a dishwasher which has asubstantially rectangular tub whose open front is closable by a doormovable between a closed position where it seals the access opening andan open postion. Within the tub, I provide first and secondsubstantially rectangular dish racks which are respectively mounted atan upper level and at a lower level by appropriate mounting means, sothat the dish racks may slide horizontally between .a first positionwhere they are fully within the tub and a second position where they aresubstantially out of the tub. Within the tub, for effecting a washingoperation, I provide water circulating means below the second dish rackbut which, for optimum effectiveness in washing, includes an upstandingmember which extends substantially above the bottom of the second dishrack, but substantially below the bottom of the first dish rack. Inaddition, the upstanding member is substantially removed from the backand sides of the second dish rack, being preferably near the centerthereof so as to have optimum effectiveness in reaching all parts of thetub with recirculation flow.

To permit the second dish rack to slide out without interference fromthe upstanding member, I provide in the second dish rack a passage whichextends from the upstanding member to the back of the dish rack. Thepassage is bridged for structural strength, by .a number of wire membersformed as inverted Us spaced along the passage and joining the oppositesides thereof. The wire members are, of course, formed to clear theupstanding member so that when the dish rack moves forward they willpass over the upstanding member. As an important aspect of my inventionI provide, extending up from the top of the inverted U-shaped members, anumber of wire fingers which form dish receiving compartments at a thirdintermediate level in the tub, thereby increasing the dish receivingcapacity of the tub through use of the same structure which provides thenecessary rigidity in a tub having multi-level Washing. Of course, theword dish is used here in the same sense as in dish washer, i.e., itincludes all types of food preparing and food serving structures ratherthan just those which are dish shaped.

The subject matter which I regard as my invention is particularlypointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of thisspecification. My invention, l owever, together with further objects andadvantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the followingdescription taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

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In the drawings, FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a dishwasherembodying my invention, partly in section and partly broken away so asto illustrate details; and

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary view along line 22 in FIGURE 1.

Referring now to FIGURE 1 of the drawings, there is shown a dishwasherof the type wherein a cabinet 2 is provided, the cabinet including astationary back 3, side walls 4 and 5, and a top portion 6. The back,top, and

- walls, together with a front door section 7, form a generallyrectangular enclosure or tub 8 within which are positioned a pair ofgenerally rectangular racks 9 and 10 respectively located at an upperlevel and a lower level of the tub. Each of the racks is made of wireparts suitably secured together and formed in the conventional mannerwith upstanding fingers 11 to provide compartments for receiving andholding the dishes to be washed.

In order to gain access to the enclosure, the door section 7 is graspedby an upper handle portion 12 and pivoted downwardly about pivot memberssuch as that shown at 13 until it has substantially horizontally. Thelower rack It) is provided with rollers 14 at each side thereof, a track15 (FIGURE 2) being formed so that the rack 10 is movably horizontallyby rolling of rollers 14 on track 15. When the door is open in itshorizontal position, it forms a guide, so that when the lower rack 10 isrolled out it will roll forward on the door 7 which thus constitutes anextension of the track 15. In this manner, the rack 10 may be movedhorizontally entirely out of the tub 8 by the mounting arrangementshown.

In the case of the upper rack 9, a suitable mounting arrangement,generally indicated by the numeral 16, is provided so as to permit therack 9 to be similarly moved in a horizontal plane so as to slideforward out of the tub 8 when door 7 is open. A suitable structure foreffecting this particular purpose is fully described and illustrated incopending application Serial No. 146,106, filed October 19, 1961, byNorman L. Kendt and assigned to General Electric Company, assignee ofthe present invention. Very briefly, the structure includes rollers 17mounted on the side walls 4 and 5 so as to support on each side wall aslide member 18 having slots 19 within which rollers 20 secured to therack member 9 itself may roll. Thus, the slide 18 may move partly out ofthe tub 8 when door 7 is opened, and the rack 9 may then move forward onthe slide 18 so as to be entirely outside the enclosure.

Continuing the description of the dishwasher, it incorporates suitablewashing means in the form of a rotatable water ejecting member 21positioned within tub 2 beneath lower rack 10 and having a number ofoutlets such as those shown at 22 so as to eject upwardly streams ofliquid during operation of the dishwasher. It has been found that foroptimum washing effect, the member 21 should further be provided with anupwardly extending portion 23 located substantially centrally of the tub8, and extending upwardly far enough so that it ejects water from aposition above at least the major part of lower dish rack 10. This iseffected, in the present case, by providing member 23 with a telescopingpart 24 which moves up to an operative position (shown in dottedoutline) when under the influence of water pressure, and also providessprays of water as to improve substantially the washing effect providedby the lower rotatable member 21.

Both for member 23 and member 21, the intent is that water be ejectedfrom them against the dishes and other utensils in the racks withconsiderable force so as to effect cleansing of the articles. Withrespect to member 23, a suitable structure therefor is shown anddescribed in copending application Serial No. 107,987 filed on May 5,1961, by Lauren W. Guth and assigned to General Electric Company,assignee of the present invention.

In addition to the members 21 and 23, the washing means may furtherinclude an upper rotatable Water ejecting member 25. All three of themembers may be fed from a pumping assembly generally indicated bynumeral 26 positioned at the very bottom 27 of the tub 8 in a sump[formed therein. The assembly 26 receives its water through appropriateinlet means 28 positioned in the sump 27, and is normally driven by amotor 259 in the conventional manner. For instance, the motor 29 may,when rotated in one direction, cause the pumping assembly 26 to forceliquid up through members 21, 23 and 2-5 for dishwashing purposes and,when reversed, may cause the pumping assembly to pass liquid out to adrain (not shown).

It will be understood that with such a structure a dishwashing operationmay readily be provided by means of a conventional sequence controlassembly (not shown) which controls in suitable sequence the entry ofwater and washing materials, the spraying of the dishes, and otherutensils. to be washed, and the removal of the water. In addition, 'fordrying the dishes and other utensils after they have been cleansed, asuitable electric heating element 30 may be provided in the conventionalmanner, with the intent being that element 31} also be under the controlof the sequence control assembly so as to be energized at the end of thewashing operation, and during the washing operation if so desired toassist in heating water.

It will readily be seen that while the upwardly extending member 23,with its extensible portion 24, constitutes an element of substantialimportance in obtaining an op timum washing effect, it necessarilyprovides some problems insofar as the sliding lower rack is concerned.Necessarily, in order for the rack to be able to move forwardhorizontally without interference [from member 23, a passage must beprovided extending from the member 23 itself to the back of the rack soas to permit it to move entirely out of the dishwasher. This passage isdenoted by the numeral 31 in FIGURE 2, and as can be seen, the provisionof such a passage provides a division between the two sides of the dishrack 10. In view of the fact that the disk rack 10 is formed of wire,this creates a structural problem of rigidity.

In the present case, as part of my inventive concept, the necessaryrigidity of rack '10 is retained by joining the free ends 32 of thebottom of the rack adjacent member 23 by inverted U-shaped members 33which are secured to the ends 32 in the usual manner. As best seen inFIGURE 1, a number of these U-shaped members 33 is preferably provided;members 33 may be reinforced by generally horizontally extending wiremembers 34 secured to the U-shaped members 33 along approximately thecenter points of the vertical legs 35. The U-shaped members are formedwith their legs 35 long enough so that, as the rack 10 slides forward(because the rollers 14 move on tracks the flat base portion 36 of eachU- shaped member passes over the top of extensible member 24 when it isin the retracted position. Of course, member 24 assumes this positionduring periods of no water circulation, that is, at least whenever door7 is open.

As an important feature of my invention, I provide fingers 37 extendingupwardly from each side of the base, or top, 36 of the inverted U-shapedmembers 34. This is done by providing a pair of horizontally extendingwire members 38 secured along the bases 36 and then securing the fingers37 to the members 33. This particular feature may readily be seen inFIGURE 1, viewed in combination with FIGURE 2. It will further be seenthat fingers 37 may have an appropriately bent center portion 39, andmay be spaced in a desired manner as shown. Because the fingers 37extend upwardly from the base 36 of the inverted U-shaped members 33,and because this base of the U-shaped member is above the remainder ofrack 10, the fingers 37 cooperate with each other and with members 38,as best seen in FIGURE 1, to provide dish receiving compartments at alevel which is above the level of the remainder of rack it but below thelevel of rack 9. Preferably, this is effected by providing an equalnumber of fingers 37 on each side of base 36, the fingers being arrangedin pairs, each pair forming a line generally perpendicular to themovement of rack 10.

For further rigidity, if so desired, a pair of wires 40 and 41 may beprovided extending across the back of rack 10 at a height sufficient toclear the top of member 24 in its retracted position. The provision ofsuch added strengthening means is, of course, a function of the rigiditydesired, wire gauge used for the rack, etc.

In other words, an intermediate level for racking a number of dishes isprovided, and it has been found that this is most convenient for rackingsaucers and small serving plates such as those shown in dotted outlinein both FIGURES 1 and 2. It will be seen, in this connection, that theshape of fingers 37 is appropriate to rigid retention of the dishesduring washing operations. By this means, additional capacity isachieved for the dishwasher by a structure which, at the same time,solves a problem created by the desire to provide the most effectivewashing structure possible and by the fact that such a structureincorporates a member extending up through the lower rack to a levelabove the bottom thereof.

In this manner, what initially appeared to be a problem and a possibledisadvantage has been turned by my invention into a ready solutioncombined with an additional advantage not previously recognized, that ofan increased capacity and a highly desirable location for saucers, smallplates (or other items which will fit into the space provided) to bewashed.

While I have shown and described a particular embodiment of myinvention, I do not desire my invention to be limited to the preciseconstruction disclosed, and I intend by the appended claims to cover allmodifications which fall within the true spirit and scope of myinvention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates is:

1. A dishwasher comprising:

(a) a substantially rectangular tub having an open front forming anaccess opening;

(b) a closure member mounted for movement between a closed positionwherein it seals said access opening and an open position;

(c) first and second substantially rectangular wire dish racksrespectively mounted at upper and lower levels of said tub and formed toprovide dish receiving compartments at said levels;

(d) first and second mounting means respectively mounting said dishracks for horizontal sliding motion, each of said dish racks beingmovable between a first position in which it is fully within said tuband a second position in which it is substantially out of said tub;

(e) water circulating means within said tub beneath said second dishrack, said circulating means including an upstanding member extendingsubstantially above the bottom of said second dish rack andsubstantially below the bottom of said first dish rack at a pointsubstantially removed from the back and sides of said second dish rack;

(1) said second dish rack having a passage formed therein from saidupstanding member to the back of said second dish rack thereby to permitsliding of said second dish rack without interference from saidupstanding member;

(g) a plurality of wire members shaped as inverted :Us spaced along saidpassage and joining the opposite sides thereof, said wire members beingformed to clear said upstanding member when said second dish rack movesforward; and

(h) a plurality of wire fingers extending upwardly from the tops of saidU-shaped wire members, said wire fingers forming dish receivingcompartments at a third intermediate level in said tub and therebyincreasing the dish receiving capacity of said tub.

2. The apparatus defined in claim 1 wherein said water circulating meansis located substantially at the center of said second dish rack.

3. The apparatus defined in claim 1 wherein said upstanding rnernber hasa telescoping section, said telescoping section moving upwardly duringoperation to an extended position which is still below said upper level.

4. The apparatus defined in claim 1 wherein straight horizontal wiremembers are secured to the top of said inverted U-shaped Wire members ateach side thereof, and 15 3,009,

ti an equal number of said Wire fingers are provided extending upwardlyfrom each of said horizontal wire members, said wire fingers beinglocated so'as to form pairs in a line substantially perpendicular to themovement of 5 the dish racks.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS O 13.27,603 Scott Aug. 31, 1897 2,710,617 James June 14, 1955 2,910,207Andrew Oct. 27, 1959 2,971,652 Getchell Feb. 14, 1961 Zurek NOV. 21,1961

1. A DISHWASHER COMPRISING: (A) A SUBSTANTIALLY RECTANGULAR TUB HAVINGAN OPEN FRONT FORMING AN ACCESS OPENING; (B) A CLOSURE MEMBER MOUNTEDFOR MOVEMENT BETWEEN A CLOSED POSITION WHEREIN IT SEALS SAID ACCESSOPENING AND AN OPEN POSITION; (C) FIRST AND SECOND SUBSTANTIALLYRECTANGULAR WIRE DISH RACKS RESPECTIVELY MOUNTED AT UPPER AND LOWERLEVELS OF SAID TUB AND FORMED TO PROVIDE DISH RECEIVING COMPARTMENTS ATSAID LEVELS; (D) FIRST AND SECOND MOUNTING MEANS RESPECTIVELY MOUNTINGSAID DISH RACKS FOR HORIZONTAL SLIDING MOTION, EACH OF SAID DISH RACKSBEING MOVABLE BETWEEN A FIRST POSITION IN WHICH IT IS FULLY WITHIN SAIDTUB AND A SECOND POSITION IN WHICH IT IS SUBSTANTIALLY OUT OF SAID TUB;(E) WATER CIRCULATING MEANS WITHIN SAID TUB BENEATH SAID SECOND DISHRACK, SAID CIRCULATING MEANS INCLUDING AN UPSTANDING MEMBER EXTENDINGSUBSTANTIALLY ABOVE THE BOTTOM OF SAID SECOND DISH RACK ANDSUBSTANTIALLY BELOW THE BOTTOM OF SAID FIRST DISH RACK AT A POINTSUBSTANTIALLY REMOVED FROM THE BACK AND SIDES OF SAID SECOND DISH RACK;(F) SAID SECOND DISH RACK HAVING A PASSAGE FORMED THEREIN FROM SAIDUPSTANDING MEMBER TO THE BACK OF SAID SECOND DISH RACK THEREBY TO PERMITSLIDING OF SAID SECOND DISH RACK WITHOUT INTERFERENCE FROM SAIDUPSTANDING MEMBER; (G) A PLURALITY OF WIRE MEMBERS SHAPED AS INVERTEDU''S SPACED ALONG SAID PASSAGE AND JOINING THE OPPOSITE SIDES THEREOF,SAID WIRE MEMBERS BEING FORMED TO CLEAR SAID UPSTANDING MEMBER WHEN SAIDSECOND DISH RACK MOVES FORWARD; AND (H) A PLURALITY OF WIRE FINGERSEXTENDING UPWARDLY FROM THE TOPS OF SAID U-SHAPED WIRE MEMBERS, SAIDWIRE FINGERS FORMING DISH RECEIVING COMPARTMENTS AT A THIRD INTERMEDIATELEVEL IN SAID TUB AND THEREBY INCREASING THE DISH RECEIVING CAPACITY OFSAID TUB.